The present invention relates generally to a hair comb for holding the user's hair in place and, more particularly, to a hair comb having gripping elements to prevent the hair comb from dislodging from the user's hair.
Hair combs are used by women to secure their hair in a predetermined arrangement. A hair comb typically comprises a back and a plurality of fixed teeth which are inserted into the user's hair. In theory, the teeth of the comb grip the user's hair to retain the hair and the comb in place. In actual practice, however, combs having fixed teeth do not hold their position well and are easily dislodged. For this reason, bobby pins are frequently used to secure the hair comb in place.
In the past, it has been proposed to incorporate gripping elements into a hair comb to secure the hair comb in place. For example, hair combs having gripping elements are disclosed in the patents to Marini, U.S. Pat. No. 2,456,138; Leibert, U.S. Pat. No. 2,479,631; Hertz, U.S. Pat. No. 2,530,612; and Cartheuser, U.S. Pat. No. 2,596,207. Also of interest are the patents to Watson, U.S. Pat. No. 842,733; and Leonard, U.S. Pat. No. 871,422.
The patents to Liebert, U.S. Pat. No. 2,479,631 and Cartheuser, U.S. Pat. No. 2,596,207 disclose hair combs having one set of fixed teeth and a second set of moveable teeth. The user's hair is clamped between the fixed teeth and the moveable teeth. In each of these patents, the moveable teeth are biased to a closed position. The biasing member applies a predetermined gripping force which cannot be varied by the user.
The patent to Marini, U.S. Pat. No. 2,456,138, discloses a hair comb having a first set of fixed teeth and a second set of rotatable blade-like teeth. The blade-like teeth are connected to a moveable bar. When the bar is moved longitudinally, the blade-like teeth rotate from an open position to a closed position to clamp the user's hair.
The patent to Hertz, U.S. Pat. No. 2,530,612 discloses a hair comb having a set of fixed teeth and a plurality of smaller serrated teeth mounted on a moveable bar. When the serrated teeth are in a retracted position, the hair of the user can pass freely into the openings between the fixed teeth. The serrated teeth can be moved to an extended position in which the serrations engage the hair to secure the comb in place.
The patent to Watson, U.S. Pat. No. 842,733, discloses a comb having a set of hollow teeth. A U-shaped bow is disposed within the hollow teeth. The U-shaped bow includes a set of upwardly projecting spikes. When the bow is deformed by applying pressure to the bow, the spikes retract into the hollow teeth. The spikes return to an extended position when the pressure on the bow is removed.
The patent to Leonard, U.S. Pat. No. 871,422, discloses a hair pin having a pair of retractable spurs for engaging the hair.
None of the cited references has gained commercial acceptance. The failure of these prior art devices to gain commercial acceptance reflects inherent disadvantages of those devices. Some of those disadvantages include complicated structures which are costly to produce, structures that snag the user's hair, and the inability to vary the gripping force applied by the gripping element.